Friday morning we woke up to daylight and our first opportunity to see the beautiful farm that was a mystery in the dark of the previous night.
We had a very slow morning and greeted all the remaining party goers that arrived that morning. We relaxed and explored the small, organic farm.
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| Dan's new friend |
After plenty of food and coffee, a group of us headed out to hike Mt. Constitution. This is a hike that I have done several times before, including two months prior during our trip to Orcas Island that started Trip America. The hike is 6.7 miles round-trip with 1,500 ft. elevation gain. However, this time we took a different route up the backside which seemed much more strenuous, as we traversed up the mountain in what seemed like never ending switchbacks. But the view at the top never ceases to amaze.
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| View from the top - Mt Baker |
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| We made it! |
We took the usual way back down the mountain, which offers a little more trail diversity with forests, creeks and vista views.
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| The crew headed back down |
We were all very excited to reach the bottom of the hike, where we had cold beer and a lake waiting for us. We swapped our boots and shorts for swimsuits and spent the next hour or so swimming and relaxing before heading back to the farm.
Tonight on the menu was grilled chicken. I think we had enough chicken to feed three times as many people but we did our best to eat as much as we could.
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| Preparing for a feast |
Dinner was delicious and the company was fantastic. Dan and I soaked it all in and then retreated to the tent for some sleep.
Day 59
Today was a choose your own adventure day. Several people chose to go into town for the Saturday Farmer's Market. We perused the vendor booths, had a snack and stumbled upon a library book sale. Dan and I will never miss a chance to look at books and ended up buying a handful to take home. After we had our fill of entertainment, Dan, Melissa and I drove back to the farm to find that we were the only ones there! Seeing as how just that morning, there were at least 30 people at the farm, including around ten kids, we took this peaceful opportunity to relax and read in the sun.
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| Peaceful garden |
Because there was still some sun left in the day before dinner, Dan and drove back down to the lake and found a nice spot to play cribbage and drink a beer.
Tonight was the big party night, Justin's 40th birthday. The owners of the farm were making dinner for us: locally caught salmon, fresh salad and vegetables from the garden and a berry cobbler. The food was beautiful and tasted delicious. We ate and ate until we couldn't eat anymore.
While the adults were eating, the kids had been secretly preparing a "play" to perform for the adults. We enjoyed our evening entertainment and then relocated to the fire for an evening of fun.
Day 60
We woke to the pitter-patter sound of rain on the tent. We couldn't believe that today was the end of Trip America and in less than a few hours we would back in Seattle. Packing up and saying goodbyes was a quick and quiet affair, as most people were slightly hungover from the night before and trying to avoid getting too wet in the rain. We quickly made our way to the ferry line, knowing that we were probably in for a long wait. As we sailed back across the Puget Sound and drove South on I-5, it started sinking in that Trip America was coming to an end. I guess it's time to start planning Trip America v2 - East Coast!
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| Anacortes Ferry Terminal - June 2013 |
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| Anacortes Ferry Terminal - August 2013 |
-Lauren
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